Stocks To Watch For June 18 (SUN, THC, BP, SKS)

Some of the stocks that may grab investor focus today are: Standard & Poor's Ratings Services is likely to downgrade the rating of Sunoco SUN, as the company is planning to separate its SunCoke Energy unit from its business. Patrick Jeffrey, an S&P credit analyst, mentions, "We believe that a separation of SunCoke Energy would result in a weaker business risk profile for Sunoco because its more volatile refining segment would represent a greater portion of its overall operations." SUN’s shares dipped 0.03% to $34.23 in after-hours trading. Moody's Investors Service has upgraded the default rating of Tenet THC from “B3” to “B2.” The ratings outlook for the company is stable. According to Moody, "The upgrade of Tenet's ratings reflects continued improvement in operating results, which was further supported by the company's recent announcement raising 2010 adjusted EBITDA guidance." THC’s shares rose 0.60% to $5.05 in the after-hours trading session. Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has lowered the long-term credit rating of BP Plc BP from “AA-” to “A.” The outlook for the ratings is negative. As per Simon Redmond, an S&P credit analyst, "The downgrade reflects our opinion of the challenges and uncertainties that BP continues to face in the aftermath of the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010, and the subsea Macondo well blowout." BP’s shares gained 5.20% to $33.39 in after-hours trading. Fitch Ratings has upgraded issuer default rating of Saks Inc SKS from “B-” to “B” as the company’s comparable store sales have been positive since December 2009. Fitch also attributed the upgrade to an increase in the company’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) and a better-than-expected improvement in the credit metrics. SKS’ shares moved up 0.11% to close at $9.23 yesterday. Read more from Benzinga's Company news.